South Africa ’ s athletes acquitted themselves very well in the first World Road Running Championships in the Latvian city of Riga on 1 October , including the men winning the bronze medal in the half marathon team competition behind Kenya and Ethiopia . This gave South Africa its first medal in the competition since the team gold medals in 1998 and 1999 ( and silver in 1997 ).

Outstanding among the SA men were national champion Thabang Mosiako ( 6th ) and Elroy Gelant ( 13th ). Mosiako finished in 59:52 to become only the second South African

Thabang Mosiako to dip under an hour on a record-eligible course , placing him third on the all-time list . His time is the fifth-fastest ever ( third on a record-eligible course ). The only other South African under an hour on a standard course , SA Record-holder Stephen Mokoka , finished 11th in 60:29 ( the third-fastest of his career ).

The Cold War from 1945 to 1989 between the western countries and the Soviet bloc resulted in some memorable stand-offs , but one of the most unforgettable happened on the athletics track on this day . The occasion was the inter-city match between London and Moscow at the White City Stadium , where the 5000 metres produced a thrilling duel between Chris Chataway ( famous for helping to pace Roger Bannister to the first ever sub-four-minute mile in 1954 ) and World Record-holder Vladimir Kuts . It was the kicker versus the front runner , but as the well-known reporter Norris McWhirter put it , “ Could a spare-time amateur businessman who trains 35 miles a week live with a fulltime ‘ State ’ athlete who trains 135 miles a week ?”

Less than two months before , Kuts had beaten Chataway and Emil Zatopek at the European

Gelant ran a superb PB of 60:56 at the age of 37 to move into equal tenth on the all-time list ( with the equal 17th fastest time on a standard course ). Hendrick Ramaala , who led South Africa to those gold medals in 1998 and 1999 with a second place each time , is first on the all-time list with his aided 59:20 in 2000 . In the list below of SA ’ s 12 sub-61-minute athletes , all five sub-60 times are listed , and after that the fastest times posted by each of the athletes on the list .

Key : * = South African Record

Championships in Bern by simply running away from them , setting a world record of 13:56.6 . Here , in front of more than 40,000 spectators ( with some 15 million reportedly watching the BBC television broadcast !), he led the four-man field from the start , setting a relentless pace to blunt the Briton ’ s greater speed , and he went past 3 miles in World Record time of 13:27.0 .

However , this time the tenacious Briton did not make the same mistake as in Bern . He ran just a metre behind Kuts , lap after gruelling lap . The crowd was used to seeing Chataway start his finishing kick 300m from the finish , but turning into the final straight , the Russian was still in front , until a mere 20m from the line , when Chataway threw himself past Kuts to win by a tenth of a second in a World Record 13:51.6 . Just 10 days later in Prague , Kuts improved Chataway ’ s mark to 13:51.2 .

1 59:20A Hendrick Ramaala Lisbon 26 Mar 2000

2 59:36 * 59:42A 59:51

Stephen Mokoka Hendrick Ramaala Stephen Mokoka

Gdynia Lisbon Buenos Aires

17 Oct 2020 24 Mar 2002 25 Aug 2019

3 59:52 Thabang Mosiako Riga 1 Oct 2023 4 60:00 Precious Mashele Poznan 17 Oct 2021 5 60:11A Matthews Temane East London 25 Jul 1987 6 60:11A Zithulele Sinqe East London 25 Jul 1987 7 60:17A Mbuleli Mathanga Ostla 17 Oct 2021 8 60:23 Gert Thys Kosice 4 Oct 1997 9 60:51 Collen Mulaudzi Gdynia 17 Oct 2020 10 60:56 Elroy Gelant Riga 1 Oct 2023 11 60:56A Xolile Yawa East London 25 Jul1987 12 60:58 Lawrence Peu East London 18 May 1991

Chris Chataway ( left ) and Vladimi Kuts

South African Road List Leaders for 2023 ( As at 2 October 2023 )

This section lists the best South African official performances this year in each of the most popular official road distances .

MEN

WOMEN

KEY | a – Aided course , e . g . point-to-point , and therefore not record-legal • i – Time recorded officially during a longer race

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